Today In History with The Retrospectors

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The Play That Never Ends Oct 06, 2021

Show notes

Agatha Christie’s ‘The Mousetrap’, the world’s longest-running play, opened at the Theatre Royal, Nottingham on 6th October, 1952. Producer, Peter Saunders predicted the production would run for 14 months.

Over 28,000 performances later, the show has become an iconic attraction in London’s West End - with a set that still includes the original mantelpiece clock present on stage on opening night nearly 70 years ago.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly unpick the unconventional choices Christie made with the copyright of her script; recount Noel Coward’s begrudging correspondence with her when it overtook Blithe Spirit as the West End’s longest-running play; and uncover the tragic backstory that inspired its plot… WITHOUT REVEALING THE TWIST!

There is SEVEN MINUTES MORE of us chatting all things Mousetrap - including poring over its predecessor as London’s longest-running show, the forgotten fruit-based operetta ‘Chu Chin Chow’ - exclusively available to supporters of our podcast. Just join us on Patreon*, or subscribe to our premium feed on Apple Podcasts, to get it!

* top two tiers only. patreon.com/Retrospectors

Further Reading:

• History timeline from ‘The Mousetrap’s official website (2021): https://uk.the-mousetrap.co.uk/the-history/

• “Less in it than meets the eye” - The Guardian’s original review of the production (1952): https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2015/nov/27/the-mousetrap-agatha-christie-opens-london-1952

• ‘Meet The Cast of The Mousetrap’ (Theatre Cafe, 2018): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jKdE_gmen0

We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:podfollow.com/Retrospectors

The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.

Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2021.

#50s #Theatre #Arts #UK

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To Versailles! To Versailles! Oct 05, 2021

Show notes

The ‘Women’s March’ of 1789 began spontaneously, when a market trader banged a drum in a Parisian square on 5th October - launching a chain of events which would eventually end a century of Versailles rule and lead to the execution of Louis XVI.

Initially a reaction to the grain shortage that had left Parisians hungry as the aristocracy indulged in luxuries, the protest soon morphed into an angry mob demanding everything from the relocation of the monarchy to the murder of Marie Antoinette.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly ask why the protestors reportedly fainted at the King’s feet once granted an audience with him; review some of the bizarre weaponry mobilised by the mob; and learn that the French Revolution happened a lot more slowly than you probably think it did…

Further Reading:

• ‘A History of the Women’s March on Versailles’ (ThoughtCo, 2019): https://www.thoughtco.com/womens-march-on-versailles-3529107

• ‘How Bread Shortages Helped Ignite The French Revolution’ (HISTORY): https://www.history.com/news/bread-french-revolution-marie-antoinette#:~:text=The%20Bread%20Famine%20in%2018th%2Dcentury%20France.&text=It%20didn't%20work.,a%20little%20over%20three%20weeks

• ‘What It Was Like To Live At Versailles’ (Weird History, 2019):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qrKysG9aiic

For bonus material and to support the show, visitPatreon.com/Retrospectors

We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:podfollow.com/Retrospectors

The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.

Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2021.

#1700s #Royals #Politics #France

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Birth of the Breastaurant Oct 04, 2021

Show notes

Hooters, the beach bar chain famous for its flirtatious waitresses, first flung open its doors in Clearwater, Florida on 4th October, 1983. Its publicity-friendly ‘Hooters Girls’ - and a chance visit by John Riggins, star fullback for the Washington Redskins - ensured the concept took off, spawning 425 outlets in 30 countries.

However, more recently, Hooters was hit by rival ‘breastaurants’ Tilted Kilt and Twin Peaks, and a slow generational shift away from ‘male’ environments in which exclusively female serving employees are forced to wear sexualised outfits and banter with customers.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly consider the clever but disconcerting clauses within Hooters’ employment contracts; reveal the thinking behind the safety briefings on-board short-lived airline Hooters Air; and explain how Hooters Girls kept U.S. troops entertained in Afghanistan…

Further Reading:

• ‘Wanna do a Dad a really big favor? Tell your Mom you wanna go to Hooters!’ - Hooters’ first TV commercial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIEentLPJQQ

• ‘14 Things You Should Know Before Eating At Hooters’ (Delish, 2016):

https://www.delish.com/food-news/a48451/what-you-need-to-know-before-you-visit-hooters/

‘The Real Reason Hooters Is Disappearing Across The Country’ (Mashed, 2018): https://www.mashed.com/129065/the-real-reason-hooters-is-disappearing-across-the-country/

For bonus material and to support the show, visitPatreon.com/Retrospectors

We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:podfollow.com/Retrospectors

The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.

Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2021.

#80s #Food #US

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Postcards - The Poor Man's Telephone Oct 01, 2021

Show notes

A 12 x 8.5cm ‘Correspondenzkarte’, the earliest progenitor of the modern-day postcard, was created by the Austrian Post on 1st October, 1869.

Cheaper and more practical than sending long-form letters, the new medium was an instant sensation with the public - with three million postcards being sent in the first three months. But cultural conservatives felt it would lead to poor grammar, a capitulation of individuality, and a brash new form of self-expression...

In this episode, Arion, Olly and Rebecca reveal the indomitability of the Isle of Man’s postcard censorship committee; revisit the career of the ‘King of the Saucy Seaside’, Donald McGill; and

unearth the frustrated adventures of ‘the wronged true inventor of the postcard’, Dr. Heinrich Von Stephan.

Further Reading:

• ‘The Story of the Postcard’ (Postimuseo Finland, 2020): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjFTxJi66e8

• ‘Tweeting by mail: The postcard's stormy birth’(LA Times, 2013): https://www.latimes.com/opinion/la-xpm-2013-jun-22-la-oe-cure-postcards-twitter-20130623-story.html

• ‘History of the Saucy Postcard’ (Donald McGill Museum, 2020): https://saucyseasidepostcards.com/?page_id=89

We’ve released FIVE MINUTES MORE of bonus content about the history of postcards, which you can access by supporting us via Patreon* at patreon.com/retrospectors.

By so doing, you get a bonus bit every single week*, and an ad-free feed, and you help us make the show. Thanks!

* top two tiers only

The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.

Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham.

We'll be back on Monday! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:podfollow.com/Retrospectors

#1800s #Inventions #Austria

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The Shipwrecked Mr. Crusoe Sep 30, 2021

Show notes

Literature’s most famous castaway, Robinson Crusoe, was washed up on a desert island - where he would remain for 28 years - on 30th September, 1659.

By selecting this date, author Daniel Defoe ensured that his fictional protagonist’s fate pre-dated the real-life estrangement of Royal Navy man Alexander Selkirk, who was stranded some 46 years later: 14 years prior to Defoe writing his novel.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how his story pioneered not only the English novel, but also the movie trailer; ask whether Crusoe’s narrative voice sounds like an authentic young man of the period, or betrays the fact that Defoe was nearly sixty when he created him; and dig around in the writer’s early career (including, but not limited to, creating perfume from civets)...

Further Reading:

• Daniel Defoe profile (The British Library): https://www.bl.uk/people/daniel-defoe

• ‘Debunking the Myth of the ‘Real’ Robinson Crusoe’ (National Geographic, 2016): https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/article/robinson-crusoe-alexander-selkirk-history

• The Shipwreck scene from ‘Robinson Crusoe’ (1927): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCaYAD1ZGuM

For bonus material and to support the show, visitPatreon.com/Retrospectors

We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:podfollow.com/Retrospectors

The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.

Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham.

#1600s #Arts #UK

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The 33-Day Pope Sep 29, 2021

Show notes

The corpse of John Paul I was discovered by a nun in the early hours of 29th September, 1978. His body was embalmed within 24 hours, heightening suspicions that the cause of death may have been unnatural. He had been Pope for just 33 days.

An unconventional Pope - who had refused to wear the papal tiara, use the Royal 'we’, or sit on a ceremonial throne - he seemed to have had a weird premonition that he wouldn't be in office for long, famously responding to his elevation to Popehood by telling the Cardinals, ‘May God forgive you for what you have done’.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly review the conspiracies surrounding the Pope’s apparently untimely death; reveal the role of the unfortunately-named Cardinal Sin; and look back on some of his surprising comic journalism...

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